Women's Museum unveils revamped exhibition

The Women's Museum of California's permanent exhibit on women's suffrage has received a facelift.

The Women's Museum of California's permanent exhibit on women's suffrage has received a facelift. (Courtesy photo)

Emily Sorensen

The Women’s Museum of California, at Liberty Station, is celebrating women’s suffrage with a newly-revamped exhibit opening Friday.

The permanent exhibit, “March to Empowerment,” highlights the fight for women’s suffrage in the late 19th and early 20th century.

The museum will celebrate the opening with a VIP opening reception at 6 p.m. Friday, for VIP guests and museum members. Those wishing to attend can RSVP (and become a member) at womensmuseumca.org.

“This exhibit will actively encourage viewers to place themselves within the legacy of the fight for women’s rights,” Diane Peabody Straw, executive director of the Women’s Museum, said in a press release. “Not only are we highlighting items from our museum collection that visitors have never seen before, we have also added interactive components to bring the stories of these extraordinary women to life.”

Included in the revision is a focus on the women who mobilized, educated and persisted in an effort to change national law, according to the press release, and their stories. It will also look at the full context of the changes that took place at the state and national level.

The revised exhibit also includes an increased focus on the impact communities of color had on the suffrage movement and “the righteous call for equal rights for all Americans.”

The exhibit will include historical documents and artifacts on display from the museum’s Alice Park collection. Park was a Californian suffragist, vegetarian, pacifist and socialist. The collection includes correspondences from Park to Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt and Charlotte Perkins Gilman.

In addition to featuring the suffrage movement, the exhibit will also focus on the wider societal changes that spawned once women were able to vote, according to the press release. This includes the increased demand for social justice and how women’s votes impacted the Civil Rights movement and pacifism movement following World War II.

The Women’s Museum of California is at 2730 Historic Decatur Road, Barracks 16 in Liberty Station. It is open noon to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, closed Monday and Tuesday.

Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and students. Members have free admittance.